Hotel Living...

Ok, so I've had a TON of people ask how it is living in a hotel....I know at first thought it would seem frustrating or annoying, but let me tell you folks, with a little creativity, it can be VERY easy, fun, and rather relaxing!!!

The biggest problem with where we're at now is that we're not in suites, so bye bye to the full fridge, stove, kitchen sink and dishwasher that we had in Iowa, and hello to....uhhhh....well, a teeny tiny fridge (yes we go to the grocery store a lot for fresh food)...a little microwave, and a multi purpose bathroom sink!

Cooking in the microwave is actually quite easy, and I bought a small George Foreman grill to do meats on....so the other night I made a delicious grilled chicken, Mexican rice, and refried beans....might I say it was delicious, and I got a huge kick out of being creative....yes, I have to cook in the bathroom because it's the only safe space (heat resistant counter) to use the grill and our toaster....Unfortunately as my mother so lovingly pointed out...the bathroom is, well....a bathroom so some necessary activities that don't usually go hand in hand with cooking also take place in there as well....AT LEAST not at the same time... right!!!

I just have to laugh at our daily life here....in the morning we brush out teeth, and get ready for the day, then I wash the sink so I can wash dishes and bottles, then I wash it again to give the baby a bath, and then wash the sink again so that it's ready for whatever comes next!!! It's pretty frustrating that we don't have a bathtub (only the handicap rooms have tubs, we have 2 person granite shower) so Owen gets bathed in the sink most of the time, although he's outgrowing it and I shower with Carter...I bet you can guess how well that goes with a two year old who hates getting splashed....I lure her in by drawing snakes on the glass shower wall (with bath foam) for her to "wash wash wash" then I surprise attack her with washing her hair and body...the screaming only lasts a few minutes...then she laughs and tells me all day that she had a "sssower" with "sneeks"!!!!

Thankfully, I have very well behave children...we brought a lot of Carter's toys, so she's pretty well entertained all day...Owen's a good little guy and doesn't fuss too much....my biggest concern in a hotel was being too loud for the hotel guests above, below and next to us, but I have to say we do pretty well, no complaints yet!!! We don't have a separate bedroom, so when Carter needs a time out I have to send her to the bathroom...it's really funny to hear myself say in serious mommy tone "Carter do you want to go to the bathroom".... or "Carter go to the bathroom until you're done crying".....it just sounds so funny especially since she's not potty trained and has no other reason to "go to the bathroom"!!!

Nap time is easy peasy...I just close the curtains, have Carter lay down on Daddy's side of the bed, tell her to close her eyes for a rest...and within minutes...SHE'S OUT!!! AND I can go about my business without her ever waking up, I can visitors, housekeeping can come and go, Owen can cry, I can watch TV, be on the computer....etc....and she stays asleep...yes I know I'm VERY BLESSED!!! Owen is starting to nap about the same time, and goes to bed about an hour or so after Carter...he wakes up to eat once in the middle of the night and then again in the wee hours of the morning, but hey that's pretty good!!!

Riding the elevator up and down, up and down to go from floor five to one to do laundry gets annoying, but Carter loves to have "my's earn" (my turn) to push the buttons, she's learning the numbers 1 and 5 really well!!! Not having to pay to do laundry makes up for it though...they have new whirlpool duets (my dream machines!) and don't charge a cent!!!

The kids and I spend time at the community water park with other wives and kids that are here for the summer as well, we go to museums, walk the air conditioned mall, skype with family, and most days just carry on a normal routine with play time, movie time, quiet time, nap time, food time....etc. We do miss Daddy during the day, if he's working locally he's often in and out all afternoon/evening which can sometimes be really hard on Carter....he doesn't get home until usually around midnight, so we really love our lazy mornings, we all pile in our bed and watch Sponge Bob, Phineas and Ferb, and Mickey Mouse Club House all morning, and then slowly get ourselves moving with breakfast and showers...a couple times a week we get to go out to lunch or dinner with John, my new favorite place is Sam's Club, just across the street, you don't have to be a member to get in, and you can get a Famous Nathan's hot dog, and soda for $1.70...or we can get pizza, soft pretzels, ice cream sundaes...etc....we also LOVE Rosa's Cafe and Tortillaria mmmmm!!! That's one awesome thing about this desert land....there are fresh tortilla's made and sold everywhere!!!

So far we've had great hotel staff taking care of us, I love having housekeeping come every day...it's nice to have everything freshened BUT I do miss caring for house and home (minus the scrubbing the toilet part!!!) We've really enjoyed having the internet again, and cable!!! Oh I'm SO addicted to the food network channel, TLC, Lifetime and BRAVO!!! We also enjoy being able to access Netflix....thanks Nana Pattie!!! The air conditioning is oh so lovely, and the convenience of the pool is nice as well all in all, it's been a really great experience, one I'd be willing to repeat.....well, maybe....there's still a few months to go before the final judgement can be made!!!